In the fractured world that is college rugby, St. Mary's will play Life University, a chiropractic college in Marietta, Ga., for the men's national championship Saturday night at Stanford.

The bully boys of the sport, past champions Cal and BYU, are on the outside but not necessarily looking in.

That's OK with St. Mary's, which is quietly building a powerhouse on the other side of the Caldecott Tunnel. The Gaels will put their 19-1 record on the line against 9-0 Life in the championship game at 7 p.m. at Stanford's Steuber Rugby Stadium. Life beat St. Mary's 16-14 in last year's title game.

"For us, it's been a blast," St. Mary's coach Tim O'Brien said. "We've got a bunch of no-name, blue-collar guys and we're having a great time."

Dissatisfied with the direction the sport was heading under governing body USA Rugby, Cal and BYU, along with 10 other "name" schools, bolted from the organization two years ago to form the Varsity Cup. The Cougars defeated the Bears 43-33 a week ago in that group's title game.

St. Mary's had an opportunity to join the Varsity Cup but chose to stay put and continue to build its program under USA Rugby's highest level of competition, D1-A, made up of 37 schools. Over the course of the past decade under O'Brien and assistant coach Johnny Everett, the Gaels have built an elite program in the shadow of the giant and this season defeated both Cal and BYU.

"It means self-belief can go a long ways," said O'Brien, a former Cal player under coach Jack Clark. "It should inspire the smaller schools. If you organize your program properly and are supported on campus, you don't need to be deemed 'varsity' to act like varsity."

In the latest college rugby rankings, Life is No. 1, St. Mary's No. 2, BYU No. 3 and Cal No. 4.

"Is it fractured? Yes," O'Brien said. "I certainly don't begrudge Cal. I get it. More power to them. They want to take advantage of name-branding. I know where we are in the pecking order."

Rugby at St. Mary's is a club sport and O'Brien is a volunteer coach, working his day job as a stockbroker in Oakland. The Gaels draw their players primarily from Catholic high schools in San Francisco and Sacramento as well as San Diego and the state of Washington.

"You've got some of the finest talent around here in the Lamorinda program (Lafayette-Moraga-Orinda) and also De La Salle," O'Brien said. "We may be the second or third (college) choice. I don't mind taking castoffs. Our kids are doing OK being castoffs. They found a way to thrive."

Rugby championships

Where: Steuber Rugby Stadium, Stanford

Friday: Women's Division I semifinals: Stanford 29, American International 15; Penn State 58, West Chester 0